Product Marketing for Sales
If you’ve seen I Love You, Man with Paul Rudd and Jason Segel, then you know exactly how two people with what seems like Nothing in common (other than a love for legendary Canadian guitar rock band Rush) can forge a strong and unwavering bond of friendship. If you haven’t seen it, you probably know how this story goes.
And that’s my favorite simile for Sales and Product Marketing — two teams with divergent yet deeply complimentary personalities who are destined to do great things together.
When asked who ranks as their most important internal ally, many B2B sales reps will tell you it’s the product marketer, and the reasons are easy to see. Good product marketers come with a mastery of not just the product itself, but of the buyer persona and their needs, the competition, and of everything the sales rep needs to tell a compelling, differentiated story all along the sales cycle. While there will be individuals who possess deeper expertise in one or more of these areas, no one else in the organization brings as much to the table in such a compact, easy-to-use package.
But it’s not a total lock, so it’s worth explaining how product marketers can earn the status of Sales BFF.
Bring something to the party.
Nine times out of ten, you have to give before you can get. So when you want something from Sales, you should give them something first, no strings attached. This can be in many forms: do a product demo on one of their calls, dig up dirt on a competitor that’s bugging them, find a contact in the buying group they’re trying to crack, write them a prospecting email, etc. Show that you’re willing to get your hands dirty in the sales sandbox and they’ll be more willing to do something for you later.
Listen first, talk second.
No one spends more time in direct market contact than Sales, so listen up when they talk. Once you’ve made friends with them, they’ll tell you exactly what’s going on ‘out there’, and they’ll share everything their prospects have to say about your content, your messaging, and your collateral. Join the weekly Sales standup, be a fly on the wall in a pipeline review meeting, ask to listen in on a sales call or two, and just listen. Absorb. And don’t share your thoughts on what you’re hearing unless asked because chances are they’re not looking for your opinion — yet.
Be ready to jump in.
A wise mentor (yes, from Sales) once taught me that there are only two jobs in any company: Sales, and Sales Support. You know where that leaves you. And you know how it goes - when Sales needs you for something, it’s probably last-minute. Do it anyway, even if you don’t think you have anything to gain other than earning the right to ask them for something later. You’ll get requests for some competitive intel that you may have already shared; a feature-based collateral piece that may never be used again; where to find that wicked white paper you wrote; run a demo of the latest release version. Do it. Jump in, be a friend to Sales. It’ll pay off in the long run.
Know the numbers.
There’s no better way to say ‘I care’ to Sales than to understand precisely where they’re at in the month, quarter, and year. That’s the best way to read their mood. When you show that you get their world and all its ups and downs, they’ll see you as one of their own - only with less suspicion and less contempt that if you were in Finance or Operations, because they’ll know you have no ulterior motives beyond simply knowing the business. Once you demonstrate that, you’ll be seen as an ally.
Naturally, every sales team and sales leader has their own unique character. The best advice to offer here is to not rush into a relationship with Sales until you’ve spent some time getting to know them from a distance. Watch and listen. Ask questions. Talk to people who have worked with Sales longer than you. Be open minded. Then make every effort to keep listening. It’ll pay off in no time.
